Eco Design Advisor - Helping you make smarter home-building choices, for you and the environment

Building or renovating your house?Need advice on environmental issues?Here's an opportunity for you!What is it?A fantastic NEW and FREE service operating from Auckland, Waitakere, Hamilton, Tauranga, Western Bay of Plenty, Kapiti, Hutt and Nelson, and the service has been taken up by Christchurch(from July 2011).

The Eco Design Advisor is a specialist providing free energy, water and material related advice on home building projects, to ensure better use is made of resources.Why would I want environmental issues to be considered in my home?To improve the health of your family, save you money on energy and water bills, be more comfortable to live in and reduce your impact on the environment. Also, to have a more satisfying environment to live in...and perhaps even to increase the resale value of your house!What specific issues can they provide advice on?Your local Eco Design Advisor is able to provide you with independent, factual and practical building information on:

They have access to a large support network of specialists, design tools, assessment methods, and material information – all for free. Some of these are provided here.

Where do they operate?This service is currently only provided by three Councils in New Zealand for a period of 10 months. This may change in the future. See the FAQ section to help get an EDA set up outside of the existing three areas and to extend the service indefinitely.

Who is it for?Both homeowners and building professionals working on home building projects. Note that the service is currently only available to those living within the three Council areas.

Where do they operate?This service is currently only provided by eight Councils in New Zealand - but we we welcome inquiries from other Councils who may be interested.Who is it for?Both homeowners and building professionals working on home building projects. If you are an architect, you have the option of gaining 10 CPD credits for a 2 hour visit. Note that the service is currently only available to those living within the eight Council areas.Who's behind the project?This service is an initiative of BRANZ Ltd - NZ's independent research, testing, consultancy and information resource for the construction industry.